Observers: Observers: Chairman Fred Clipsham called the meeting to order at 10:10 a.m.

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1 Saskatchewan Assessment Management Agency City Advisory Committee Draft Minutes for Meeting held November 2, 2006 Novara Room, Delta Hotel, Regina, Saskatchewan PRESENT: Members: Fred Clipsham Committee Chair Craig Melvin SAMA Board Chair Robert (Bob) Schultz SAMA Board Don Barr for Suzanne Bartel City of Regina Gord Lawson for Marlys Bilanski City of Saskatoon Robert Shultze SAAA (for Mike Schulkowsky) Observers: Don Barr City of Regina Gord Lawson City of Saskatoon Norm Magnin (for John Edwards) Government Relations Laurent Mougeot SUMA Nancy Wollner-Epoch Moose Jaw Region Velma Geddes SSBA SAMA Administration: Irwin Blank, Committee Secretary Brad Korbo, A/Managing Director, Technical Standards and Policy Division Murray Cooney, Chief Executive Officer ABSENT: Members: Al Schwinghamer Pat Fiacco Vacant Greg Dionne Gary Mackay Vacant Vacant Mike St Amand Rick Brunsdon Dan Danielson City of Moose Jaw City of Regina SUMA City of Prince Albert City of Moose Jaw City of Saskatoon City of Prince Albert SSBA SAMA Board SAMA Board Observers: Maryellen Carlson Bruce Richards Vacant Joe Day Government Relations City of Saskatoon City of Moose Jaw City of Prince Albert Agenda Item: Call to Order Chairman Fred Clipsham called the meeting to order at 10:10 a.m. The committee secretary noted that Don Barr and Gord Lawson had been designated as voting members for the Cities of Regina and Saskatoon respectively, in place of Suzanne Bartell and Marlys Bilanski, for this meeting. Robert Schultze had designated as the voting member for the SAAA, in place of Mike Schulkowsky, for this meeting. 1. Agenda Moved by Gord Lawson that the agenda be adopted as circulated.. 2. Minutes and Business arising from the minutes. The committee chair asked for comments on errors or omissions in the minutes from the April 19, 2006 meeting and invited a motion to approve the minutes. SAMA City Advisory Committee 1

2 Robert Schultze (SAAA) noted that the spelling of his name in the April 19, 2006 minutes needed to be corrected to add a c and asked that this be corrected. MOTION by Don Barr that the minutes of the City Advisory Committee s meeting of April 19, 2006 be adopted, as amended.. Business Arising from Previous Minutes The committee secretary provided an update on two items arising from the April City Advisory Committee meeting: The first item arising from the April meeting was an update on the status of proposed market value assessment (MVA) legislative amendments. The package of MVA amendments were passed into law by the provincial legislature on April 27, The amendments necessary to form the foundation for the new MVA system become effective on January 1, 2009, while the amendments related to provision of information and improvements to streamline the appeal process become effective in The last series of proposed amendments to the Saskatchewan Assessment Manual that were reviewed by the advisory committees in April were later approved by the SAMA Board for implementation in 2007, with one exception. The Board deferred decision on the proposed change to the removal of the word vacant from the land site adjustment methods, and concurred with the concerns of the Commercial Advisory Committee that an issue of this nature should not be modified in the manual while the specific issue was under challenge in the appeal process. The SAMA Board Chair added that the issue of whether the Board should continue to make changes to the Saskatchewan Assessment Manual during a revaluation cycle was also reviewed by the Board, following the last series of advisory committee meetings. Following this review, the Board agreed that they must retain the authority to make manual changes at anytime in the revaluation cycle, however this authority must be exercised with discretion. The Board Chair emphasized that manual changes of this nature should only be made following a detailed analysis and clear explanation of the proposed changes and after full consultation with potentially affected stakeholders. The Chair also acknowledged that SAMA should begin the practice of posting any proposed manual changes on the SAMA website in the future, as suggested by the Commercial Advisory Committee Revaluation Documents a) Agricultural Land Review Committee (ALRC) Final Report b) 2006 Base Year Saskatchewan Assessment 4a SAMA administration provided an overview of the Agricultural Land Review Committee (ALRC) final report. Changes relative to the interim report are limited to title changes and clarification that the proposed value shifts in the report do not include any change due to the 2002 to 2006 base date update that will also be included in the final productivity models. Copies of the background material regarding items 4a to 4d are available for viewing at the Advisory Committee area of the SAMA web site. SAMA City Advisory Committee 2

3 Manual c) SAMA s 2006 Cost Guide d) Market Value Assessment in Saskatchewan Handbook MOTION: Gord Lawson moved that the City Advisory Committee receive the ALRC final report. 4b and 4c The Committee Chair provided a brief overview of what is happening in 2009 for the new City Advisory Committee observers. In 2009 we will move from our fully regulated system to a more flexible, results focused market value assessment (MVA) system. The new MVA system will incorporate all three industry standard approaches to value including the property rental income approach for properties that fall under the market value standard (all residential and most commercial properties). SAMA administration provided an overview of the proposed 2006 Base Year Regulated Property Saskatchewan Assessment Manual and 2006 (non-regulated) Cost Guide using a PowerPoint presentation. In 2009 there will be a single Saskatchewan Assessment Manual (SAM) that will be dedicated to properties that fall under the regulated property standard in the Municipal Acts (with the exception of the rules for primary audits for market value standard properties, which must also be in the manual according to legislation). The SAM is the only Agency manual that will be passed by Board Order and gazetted to continue to have the force of regulation. The SAM will also include a reference to the July 1, 2006 edition of the Marshall and Swift commercial cost guide as the standard to be used for the valuation of standard industrial buildings that fall into the heavy industrial property category within the regulated property standard. SAMA is also preparing other publications for 2009 that will not have the force of regulation to provide guidance for the use of the cost approach for residential and non-standard commercial properties (SAMA Cost Guide) and a handbook setting industry best practices for application of market value assessment techniques primarily focused on commercial properties, called the Market Value Assessment in Saskatchewan Handbook. In addition to the cost guide and market value assessment handbooks, the Marshall and Swift commercial cost guide will also be the reference guide relied on for application of the cost approach for commercial properties in all municipalities in Saskatchewan. The Marshall and Swift residential cost guide (July 1, 2006 edition) is also an option that may be adopted for use in some of the largest jurisdictions, however this residential guide will likely have limited use due to the established preference for using the sales comparison approach for residential property valuation in the cities. Committee Observer Question: Does the Marshall and Swift handbook reflect local factors or a single North American standard? SAMA Response: Marshall and Swift costs include local cost adjustments established based on Saskatchewan costs. SAMA has confirmed the accuracy of these Marshall and Swift costs with our own locally collected costs. SAMA City Advisory Committee 3

4 Brad reviewed the preliminary replacement cost, and regulated property shift expectations for Cost and rate shifts for various types of regulated properties range from less than 10% for overall arable land rates to between 50 and 100% for selected heavy industrial properties and oil and gas well equipment. The timelines for the manual, handbook and cost guide are as follows: SAMA objective is to bring the final version of the guide and manual and the remaining two or three chapters of the MVA handbook to the advisory committees at a special set of meetings in February Subject to the results from the advisory committee consultation in February, administration will be asking the Board to pass a Board Order to approve the regulated property Saskatchewan Assessment Manual and to approve the nonregulated market value assessment handbook and SAMA cost guide by resolution at the March 2007 Board meeting. City Assessors for Saskatoon and Regina confirmed that, based on preliminary analysis, the market increases for residential property in those two cities are very similar to the indicated 2002 to 2006 replacement cost increases at +25 to 30%. Committee Member Questions: Regarding the Saskatchewan Assessment Manual: Where does the 3% standard as the indicated acceptable difference between property improvement values calculated by hand using the regulated manual and values determined using a computer system come from? SAMA Response: This standard was set by SAMA in consultation with technical folks in SAMA and the Cities and reflects a standard that is considered both practical and attainable. Regarding market value assessments in smaller jurisdictions, what will occur where market data is limited? SAMA Response: In smaller jurisdictions, if there is very limited sales and/or rental data the assessment appraisers will likely continue to use the cost methods using the SAMA cost guide for residential properties or the Marshall and Swift handbook for commercial properties. Regarding inter-municipal equity in the new MVA environment: Concern was expressed on behalf of the school sector regarding the impact on value that different choice of valuation approaches will have on assessments for property in one jurisdiction versus another within the same school division. We want to see that equity is maintained in the MVA system, including areas with very limited sales information. SAMA Response: Confirmed that regardless of the approach that will be selected the assessment appraiser must maintain a link between assessed values and sale levels and that equity will be achieved at that results level. City Member Response: Confirmed that in today s assessment system SAMA City Advisory Committee 4

5 we already have a very tight relationship between overall municipal assessments and average selling prices based on sales with assessments expected to be at 100% of average sales level (+/- 2%). Going forward that standard will be maintained at the overall municipal level, which will maintain equity at this higher level. MVA is expected to allow the assessment appraiser to get more accurate assessments relative to market at the individual property level, without disrupting equity comparisons on a higher, municipal level. Committee Chair: Clarified that in the current system equity and fairness is related solely to how consistently the rules in the manual have been applied. One of the benefits of the new market value assessment system is if the homeowner has market evidence that indicates that their assessment is out of line with the market as of the assessment base date, they will be open to challenge the assessment by appeal. 4d Market Value Assessment in Saskatchewan Handbook SAMA administration circulated an updated version of the introductory chapter of the MVA handbook and gave a brief overview of the chapters in circulation at the meeting and the more detailed chapters available to all advisory committee members on the SAMA website. The main difference between this handbook, which is non-regulated and intended to provide guidance on assessment best practices to assessment appraisers and the regulated manual that must be followed by assessment appraiser when valuing regulated industrial property, linear property and agricultural land. In practical terms this means that the handbook cannot be used as a shield when defending an assessment under appeal because it is not a regulation; instead the assessment appraiser must be able to demonstrate that the assessments are supported by available market evidence. The Committee Chair noted that the introduction chapter was intended to be a key chapter for the public, explaining the basics of the market value assessment system. He invited the committee members to review and respond to these user friendly introduction and preface chapters. One of the committee members mentioned that one of the bullet points in the Desired Outcomes section of the Introduction had been identified as needing change at a previous advisory committee meeting. The committee members supported the proposed change and clarified the proposed new wording into a motion. MOTION by Don Barr, that the third bullet point in the Desired Outcomes section on page one of the Introduction chapter be modified to replace defensible with stable and accurate market value driven assessments. Accessibility of the handbook, guide and manual: SAMA City Advisory Committee 5

6 SAMA administration: The MVA handbook is intended to be a publicly accessible document with no restrictions to distribution. There should not be an issue with allowing the Cities to post the handbook on their internal servers and web site, provided version controls are properly handled. The manual and guides are also going to be made available to the extent possible, however there are some access restrictions with the detailed costs portions of the cost guide and manual. The sections that contain costs derived specifically from Marshall and Swift will only be available on payment of necessary license fees, which are required by our license to use Marshall and Swift s cost guides and cost data Advisory Committee Meetings: The issue of potentially having three advisory committee meetings in 2007, in February, April and October/November was questioned. SAMA administration clarified the need for the early (February) meeting. This first meeting is needed to finalize the manual and handbooks to ensure assessment appraisers can move forward with market analysis and preliminary value development to meet the January 1, 2008 legislated deadline. The second round of advisory committee meetings, tentatively scheduled for April or early May of 2007, would likely be limited to administrative issues such as review of 2007 annual meeting resolutions. This second series of Advisory Committee meetings could be cancelled or limited to a conference call if there was not an adequate agenda to support this second series of spring meetings. The importance of this early approval of the manual and handbooks was reiterated by the Committee members and observers from the Cities of Saskatoon, Regina and Moose Jaw. MOTION by Don Barr to approve the Market Value Assessment Handbook documents as amended Revaluation Quarterly Report The SAMA Board Chair commended Brad Korbo and his staff for their excellent efforts on preparing the Saskatchewan version of the Market Value Assessment Handbook. Craig noted that Board is very appreciative of the very good job done by the staff in preparing the handbook. SAMA administration provided an overview of the 2009 revaluation update report that was distributed in the meeting material. The objectives of SAMA are: to prepare detailed, property specific preliminary values for all SAMA jurisdictions and provide these values to GR on or before January 1, 2008 (as set out in regulations); incorporate 2008 maintenance and distribute preliminary values to clients by May 31, 2008 and wait for new percentages of value to be determined by the provincial government. Provided percentages of value are determined by September 1, 2006 SAMA s objective is to have all taxable assessments SAMA City Advisory Committee 6

7 calculated with assessment summaries provided to all 800 client municipalities by November 30, The independent jurisdictions are following similar timelines with the exception that the largest cities likely will be posting the final values as early as is practical in the fall of 2008 to ensure that appeals are resolved by the time the budget must be set. Please refer to the 2009 Revaluation Quarterly Report for further details. The City of Regina committee member confirmed that it is the intention of the City to produce their assessment roll in October to get any appeal issues resolved in time for the annual budget process in To meet this objective it is critical to get the new percentages by September 1, 2008, however this has not happened in the past two revaluations when the percentages were not determined until late October. Committee member suggestion: Legislation should be amended to allow percentages of value reporting to be shifted from the assessment roll to the tax roll. The current requirement of waiting for percentages of value to be determined by Government prior to calculating the final assessed values and posting the taxable assessments on the roll creates a very high risk for delays. Excessive delays of this nature affect the stability of the overall system by pushing the appeal process past the time when Cities must set their budgets and mill rates for The committee member noted that this issue had been mentioned to some GR administrative officials and the initial response was a no go, however the support of the City Advisory Committee and/or the SAMA Board could be helpful in moving the initiative forward. SAMA administration suggested that any initiative to move the percentages and taxable assessments from the assessment to the tax roll should be handled at a high level, such as the Mayors to the Minister. A committee member updated the group on the results of a similar discussion at SAMA s Legal and Legislative Review Committee (LLRC) earlier this fall. Following discussion at the LLRC, the LLRC agreed to the action step of having Gord Lawson forward the recommendation to the City Mayors and Managers group for review and follow up with the provincial government, if that group supports the recommendation. The committee member suggested that if the SAMA Board is willing they could also consider doing the same thing. SAMA Board Chair response: Cautioned that the government has not wanted the SAMA Board to engage directly in tax policy issues in the past. Suggested that any City Advisory Committee recommendations of this nature could follow the standard process for committee issues outside of SAMA s authority but within government s authority and simply be forwarded to government. Fred Clipsham: Reiterated the rationale for the recommendation to remove the percentages of value bottleneck from the assessment roll for the new advisory committee members. The primary reason for this SAMA City Advisory Committee 7

8 recommendation is to allow assessment rolls to be advertised and appeals concluded before the 2009 budget and tax cycle, and allow City Councils to budget without excessive contingencies for potential tax losses due to ongoing appeals. A committee observer alerted the committee that one additional issue is that the new school year end of August 31 st means that school divisions will need to set their budgets with consideration of both the 2008 assessments and estimated 2009 post revaluation assessments. This will add substantially to the budgeting risks for the 2008/2009 period. Proposed recommendation: Get the provincial government to consider either making it a higher priority to get percentages of value determined before September 1, 2008 or remove the percentages of value as a required component of the assessment roll. (Note: this recommendation was not made as a motion or voted on) A committee member suggested that the process of advertising new assessments at the start of a revaluation should utilize a truth in taxation type of concept similar to that used in some other jurisdictions. In this instance the 100% assessed value would be provided on the assessment notice, however it would be accompanied by information indicating that based on the new assessment, if all things remained equal in terms of budgets and the proportion of tax coming from each sector, (relative to the previous year), here is what would happen to your tax bill based solely on changes due to the revaluation. The committee members from the Cities of Saskatoon and Regina went over the steps in the determination of percentages of value and reinforced that this process has resulted in delays in advertising the rolls to the cities in previous revaluations. These process delays may be even more significant in 2009 due to the increase in the appeal period to 60 days, unless the process is streamlined. Regarding the impact of percentages of value on cities the members noted that City Council has the authority to set up tax class subclasses to change the impact of the assessment shifts. This flexibility means that the percentage of value decisions of the province have no direct impact on the Cities outside of the delay in waiting to receive the percentages in the first place. Norm Magnin from Government Relations (substituting for John Edwards) arrived at the meeting at 11:45 AM. Committee members provided a brief review of the key points of the percentage of value discussion for the GR representative and asked for an update of GR s current tax policy technical capabilities. Government Relations: A key factor in getting percentages of value determined in a timely fashion is for GR to actually receive all preliminary values by January 1 st of the year prior to the revaluation. In the past two revaluations, some of the major service providers, such as SAMA provided their data on time, however the last of the municipality preliminary values did not arrive until March or April (3 to 4 months late). The government processes take approximately 6 to 7 months. If GR is delayed 3 or 4 months at the start, the whole process gets delayed by 3 or 4 months. SAMA City Advisory Committee 8

9 If the data is provided by January 1 st, GR will do its level best to get the new percentages of value determined by the September 1 st timeline. The Committee Chair commented that there does appear to be an incongruence between the legislation that allow assessment rolls to be prepared as early as September 1 st and percentages of value, which have traditionally not been made available until the end of October. GR Response: The October completion dates for percentages of value go back to the initial delays in receiving preliminary values. Regarding any proposed changes to the legislation regarding assessment roll contents, taking the issue through the Agency s LLRC is an appropriate way to handle this type of change. Norm reiterated that at bottom, if the jurisdictions want the percentages determined quicker they all must be ready to provide the data earlier. SAMA administration: Concurred with the concept that we take necessary action to make the process as efficient as possible going forward. Cautioned that the removal of percentages of value from the assessment roll may not have any bottom line impact in the Cities, however it could materially affect the smaller jurisdictions. An example of the current 331 exemptions for residential property in rural municipalities was cited as a currently appealable issue that required knowledge of taxable assessments, prior to the decision to appeal being made. Because of this type of issue the policy makers may need to consider different solutions for Cities versus other municipalities. A committee member clarified that this type of taxable assessment information could still be included on the assessment roll in smaller municipalities at their discretion, however it should not be mandatory that all municipalities include this information on their assessment roll or assessment notices. SAMA s Quality Assurance Division representative mentioned that consideration of a process change of this nature must include consideration of the other uses of the taxable assessment data. Because of the requirement for SAMA to report confirmed taxable assessments to government and the requirement to provide taxable assessments to the Department of Learning for the foundation operating grant formula, the exclusion of percentages of value from the assessment roll may require the production and reporting of two assessment returns: one based on the initial 100% values and the second with percentages of value and taxable assessments included. A committee observer also expressed caution regarding this issue. From a school division perspective, there may be other downstream effects of removing percentages of value and taxable assessments from the assessment roll that must be considered. Response: We may be able to separate what the Department of Learning needs and SAMA needs for confirmation versus what is on the assessment notice. SAMA City Advisory Committee 9

10 Response from the SAAA Member: The intent behind this proposal is to get the assessment roll out sooner, get appeals done and provide for a tax roll that is more representative of final, stable assessed values. Any initiative that would increase protection of the public, like this one, would be supported by the SAAA. The Committee Chair invited a motion on this issue immediately following lunch and recessed the meeting for lunch at 12:10. Laurent Mougeot and Gord Lawson excused themselves from the meeting, at 12:15 as both had other afternoon appointments. The meeting reconvened at 1:05 PM. The Committee Chair suggested that the committee defer the motion on the assessment roll contents until after the secondary audit presentation. MOTION by Robert Schultze to receive the 2009 Revaluation Quarterly Report. 6. SAMA Secondary Audit Process ( ) SAMA s Quality Assurance Division (QAD) representative provided a PowerPoint presentation overview of the proposed 2005 to 2008 secondary audit process. The objectives of this agenda item are to: provide an overview of the proposed secondary audit model for the current regulated assessment environment, seek committee feedback on the proposed model, take the recommendation back to the Board and seek approval of the proposed secondary audit model procedure at the next Board meeting following these advisory committee meetings. This review is restricted to the secondary audit protocol. The 2009 market value assessment (MVA) style audits are still in development and consultation phases. A new committee has been established to bring recommendations forward by March The proposed secondary audit protocol for the current assessment system is based on a strict interpretation of legislation and only includes tests that are clearly within prescribed legislative requirements. Areas that are considered grey areas subject to interpretation are excluded, as are questions about assessment best practices. Questions: Please provide an example of a mass appraisal best practice that had been considered for the secondary audit or may be considered for QAD Response: Although best practices checks may not be appropriate in the current regulated environment, if they are seen as appropriate for the MVA system one example of a best practice is: If agreements for sale have SAMA City Advisory Committee 10

11 been used to establish market value assessments in a municipality, was there a certain level of due diligence in confirming that the agreement actually led to an arms length sale, prior to using the agreement. Committee Observer: Assumes that the audit is intended to ensure public confidence. Referenced the comments that the proposed audit is staying away from grey areas. Asked if this exclusion of the grey areas will become a bigger issue in 2009 when the discretionary or grey areas expand. Suggested that the provincial auditors office be consulted on this issue as they have substantial experience in all types of audits and could be a useful resource to SAMA s Quality Assurance Division in developing best practice or value for money style of audit checks for the 2009 assessment system SAMA administration: Suggested that there will be a number of best practice type decisions and checks that should be considered for Cited the example of the number of sales that may be considered adequate for valuing selected, relatively unique properties such as enclosed shopping malls in the new MVA environment. The committee that is looking at the post 2009 standards should consider these types of best practices questions as part of their audit development process. QAD Response: Agreed that this was a question that needs to be covered. The issue of ideal sale counts as set out in the literature may have limited applicability in Saskatchewan. Academic best practices require substantial sale numbers; this will be an issue in Saskatchewan due to our very limited sales in many markets across the province. A Committee member from the Cities concurred with the previous suggestion regarding asking for outside consultation with the Provincial Auditors Office to assist in establishing the new MVA audit processes. Additional committee member comments: The future audit should not be a forensic style of audit that goes a mile deep and only four inches wide. These forensic style audits can also be called a letter of the law approach. This may be ok in our current regulated environment, however in a market value environment other approaches that incorporate some best practices should be applied. In the future it would be more appropriate if these audits started with a wide overview and only went deep as triggers are set off. We have an opportunity to make this procedural change as part of the move to a market value assessment system. The Committee Chair asked the Government Relations representative to comment regarding the issue that current secondary audits must fall within a narrow legal interpretation of legislation. GR Response: Legislation is intended to provide broad authority; not the narrow, limited approach. Feels that the necessary amount of latitude may still be there in existing legislation. If all parties agree, can collaborate and set up a workable process (in the current legislative environment). If there are any grey areas, the assessment community should collaborate and clarify those issues and put the established best practice in the handbook. Once in the handbook jurisdictions can anticipate that these areas could be checked as part of an overall review of whether best practices were followed in a jurisdiction. SAMA City Advisory Committee 11

12 When the legislation was established it was set up to allow for necessary flexibility. Government did not want to end up with everything legislated and regimented. Instead wanted an environment that allowed industry leaders in Saskatchewan to establish the necessary protocols. Legislation was not intended to box in the process, as some lawyers may have done. The GR representative concurred with the current process to establish a team of technical experts to sit down, define the terms, gain concurrence and then allow SAMA s QAD to monitor and measure results. Committee Chair: In preparing for 2009, Gord Senz has indicated he definitely wants a collaborative approach taken and this appears to be confirmed by Norm s comments. For 2005 to 2008 both the QAD and SAMA s Legal Counsel have recommended to omit best practice checks and stay with statutory checks. Is this acceptable to GR? GR Response: Legislation is set up to allow SAMA to establish necessary criteria. SAMA has consulted and reached a level of consensus. This was a good approach and the GR representative recommends that SAMA carry on with this protocol for the 2005 to 2008 period. The representative also cautioned that SAMA not rely on some future legislation or regulated solution to the secondary audit protocol in the future, as this type of more specific legislation may reduce the Agency s flexibility going forward. SAMA: Based on previous discussions it appears that the primary reason for these more formal external audits in Saskatchewan is to ensure that equity is maintained across Saskatchewan, in an environment where we have multiple assessment service providers. GR Response: When legislation was drafted equity was a significant consideration, but the number one reasons for the formal, arm s length audits are to provide public protection, accountability, inspire public confidence and make the system more transparent. The collaborative process being recommended by SAMA for developing the 2009 audit protocol should meet these objectives. SAAA Committee Member: Recommended that any best practice questions being considered for inclusion in the future audits should only be included if the question or task adds value to specific purpose of the audit (indicate that assessments are equitable, inspire public confidence; ensure public is protected.); if not, omit the questions or process. Additional Committee comments regarding Secondary Audits: We are moving to a results based system. In setting up the new audit protocol we need to provide the necessary flexibility to ensure that assessment appraisers are not forced to change values from what produces the best estimate of value simply to meet rigid audit terms or conditions. There are existing standards that provide direction on these issues. USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice) states that if you make a choice or reach a conclusion as an assessment professional you must be able to substantiate it with necessary data. SAMA City Advisory Committee 12

13 As part of developing the protocol there should be flexibility to consider the impact or scale of an issue relative to overall values in determining the severity of an audit finding. We can learn from what others have done, but must go forward knowing that a rigid approach that works today, with results either being compliant or non-compliant, will not work tomorrow. If SAMA seeks future legislative changes to the audit sections, could very well end up with a system that may limit your flexibility in the future; recommended that SAMA use the current consultative processes they have already started on and work within existing legislation. Kudos to QAD for work done to date to establish the audit protocol. We need to keep working together to establish the new audit models. MOTION by Robert Schulze to receive the Secondary Audit reports. The Committee Chair invited the motion regarding the request for legislative changes in the contents of assessment rolls to be brought forward. Removal of Percentages of Value Items from Assessment Roll 7. Response to 2006 Annual Meeting Resolution MOTION by Don Barr: Whereas the legislation allows assessment rolls to be produced September 1 st of the year prior to the assessment year, whereas the intention of this is to allow assessment notices to be sent and appeals filed and heard by the Board of Revision prior to the setting of a municipality s budget, whereas the current legislation requires the assessment notice to contain the provincial percentage, and whereas the provincial percentage cannot be appealed, be it resolved that the City Advisory Committee support the removal of the requirement that provincial percentages of value be shown on the assessment notice. SAMA administration distributed a corrected version of the proposed response to the one resolution passed at SAMA s 2006 annual meeting. The Committee Chair provided an overview of the SAMA response: In summary, the resolution called for SAMA to make every effort to confirm all assessment returns by January 15 th provided the assessment returns are given to SAMA within legislated timeframes. SAMA has agreed that the January 15 th date is a valid objective and will make every effort to meet this objective and treat the date as a performance measure. A copy of the complete resolution and response is available on request. MOTION by Craig Melvin to approve the SAMA response to the 2006 annual meeting resolution SAMA City Advisory Committee 13

14 8. Other Business There was no other business. MOTION by Don Barr to adjourn the meeting Meeting adjourned at 2:30 PM Irwin Blank Committee Secretary SAMA City Advisory Committee 14